. >>> coming to america, the u.s. a beacon of freedom and hope for people all around the world. the green citizenship about to be fulfilled for these 30 people, they come from different lands, have different stories to tell, but they'll all become americans live today, friday, november 16th, 2012. >>> from nbc news, this is "today" with matt lauer and savannah guthrie. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >>> good morning, welcome to "today" on a friday morning, i am matt lauer. >> good morning, i am savannah guthrie. we look at the statue of liberty live. we're going to witness something incredible on the plaza. if there's a dry eye left when the ceremony is over, i'll be amazed. 30 people that worked so hard to become u.s. citizens, a wait sometimes measured in decades will become u.s. citizens on the plaza this morning. >> so many of us take this for granted. those people on the plaza do not take it for granted. it will be amazing, their family members will witness it as well. >> we look forward to that. >>> we start with sad news out of midland, texas. one minute they're taken to